United missed out on a whole host of stars in the summer as manager David Moyes struggled to recruit his top targets.

Hoddle told talkSPORT: “If Sir Alex Ferguson had stayed this season he wouldn’t have just brought one player in. He was the master of rebuilding a team and reshaping a team, so it never had to be totally dismantled.

“Sir Alex would have known he had to sign a midfielder last summer. He wouldn’t have allowed just [Marouane] Fellaini to come in. Looking back, that was where David Moyes needed to go out and strengthen the squad.

“Six points [behind fourth place] is nothing, but only if [Robin] Van Persie and [Wayne] Rooney are playing. That's the key. The team I saw play against Chelsea [will struggle to reach the top four].”